K-12 News

The Saucon Valley School Board is set to make a decision “in the coming weeks” on whether or not to keep a school resource officer on campus, according to Lower Saucon Police Chief Thomas Barndt.

Costas Alestas, a former Bethlehem police officer and soccer coach at East Hills Middle School, intends to plead not guilty to multiple sex-related crimes involving two middle school students, his attorney said.

Parkland School Board approved a preliminary budget Tuesday that would take the millage rate from 16.30 mills to 17.12 mills — an increase of 5%. A final vote on the budget is pending.

In the midst of budget season, Easton Area School District is examining figures to trim a tax increase and bridge a multimillion dollar gap between revenue and expenditures.

The Bethlehem Area School Board passed a preliminary 2024-25 budget at a Monday special meeting. The district plans to increase taxes and pull from a surplus fund to balance the budget. The final budget will be adopted in June.

Parkland School District is likely taking on two expansion projects at Parkland High School and Orefield Middle School. More details are now coming to light about what they will look like — and how much they will cost.

Forty international students from around the globe are finishing up their school year spent in the Lehigh Valley and surrounding area soon, then will head back home to their families. International Host Family Week celebrates exchange student programs.

Pennsylvania State Police said the victim was hit by a tractor-trailer along Interstate 380 in Tobyhanna Township, Monroe County. Sean Richmond, 38, was a 2004 Easton High grad and current coach and athletic director at Stroudsburg.

Nearly 45 Allentown students have participated in a new mentorship program at Lehigh Parkway Elementary School this year. The program pairs fifth-grade leaders with younger students to help them reach academic and behavioral goals.

Allentown high school students will learn about data analytics and artificial intelligence during an eight-week summer program with DeSales University in which they earn a stipend and college credits.

Allentown Education Association President Leslie Franklin shared teacher concerns with the district administration at a Thursday school board meeting.

The school district wants the Lower Nazareth Township Board of Supervisors to rezone a piece of land at the corner of Hecktown and Country Club roads for school use.

Two proposed school district land development projects were among projects advanced by the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission’s Comprehensive Planning Committee on Tuesday afternoon.

Northampton Area Public Library was slated to get $270,000 from Northampton Area School District for the upcoming fiscal year. But some school directors want to keep the money in NASD.

The school board accepted the resignation of Kim Bretzik at their meeting earlier this week. Applicants will be interviewed to fill the vacancy April 30.

Debbie Merisca has been a teacher since 2018. She left the hospitality industry to find fulfillment working in early childhood education.

The Whitehall-Coplay School Board is considering a request to start a varsity girls wrestling program.

First Baptist Church is home to Bethlehem’s branch of Upward Sports. With the gym floor aging, Paul Kocher, director of Upward Sports, and the Bethlehem Upward Sports community, are raising money to replace it.

During National Library Week, local libraries celebrated their community role amid uncertainty. A federal order to shut down the Institute of Museum and Library Services threatens essential funding for many library programs.

Follow the journey of an adolescent boy living with PANDAS, a rare condition that causes sudden, severe psychiatric symptoms after a strep infection. He and his family navigate the challenges of this condition and find hope through treatment in the Lehigh Valley.

The Allentown School District said it's working with BusPatrol and the City of Allentown to analyze the data it receives. Violations also have been high in neighboring municipalities.

Hanover Township Elementary School Principal Erin Hines was arrested after crashing into three parked cars at the Stefko Shopping Center on Saturday, March 29, Bethlehem police said.